Wonderful Tonight
by Divine Lustre
Summary: One-shot fiction. Eric Clapton's romantic ballad, 'Wonderful Tonight', has always reminded me of Jack & Carly, so the lyrics to the song inspired me to pen this short piece. The story takes place in the Winter of 2011 between a blissfully wedded CarJack.


**WONDERFUL TONIGHT**

Jack Snyder walked into his kitchen dressed in a jet black suit, the top two buttons of his white dress shirt still unbuttoned and in need of a tie. He'd left that decision up to his wife; after all, she was the fashion expert. While he waited for her to finish blow drying her hair in the bathroom after which she was scheduled to help him pick out a tie and fasten it on, he had decided to meander downstairs for a quick snack. He reached up and opened the long cabinet next to the stove. He rummaged around inside, moving boxes and packages out of the way; browsing from shelf to shelf until he found what he was looking for. Ah, there it was! He pulled the petite paper box with the 'Pepperidge Farm' logo branded at the top out from behind the bag of potato chips; so busy eyeing the tantalizing illustration on the front that he forgot to shut the cabinet. The box was still sealed, so he carefully peeled it away and unraveled the packaging open with his fingers. He dove one hand inside and withdrew a cookie, taking a bite of that crispy wafer and discovering the rich, velvety chocolate crème nestled within. Could anything taste better than a Milano Melt? He wondered. He stood there and pampered himself with a few more mouthfuls until she called out to him from upstairs.

"Jack, I picked out a tie!" she hollered.

"Coming sweetheart!" he called back.

He gathered up the empty wax paper cup that had formerly lined the three cookies he had eaten and balled it up. He turned to make his way to the garbage can when…BAM! His forehead made direct contact with the open wooden cabinet door, leaving him in a mixed state of shock and pain.

"DAMN IT!" he roared, rubbing the impacted spot on his forehead with the palm of his hand.

He slammed the blasted thing shut and muttered a string of curse words.

He looked down at the paper box sitting on the kitchen counter and eyed the alluring illustration again: resting atop a whole Milano Melt was half of another one, oozing with luscious, chocolaty goodness. Should he or shouldn't he? That was the big question.

He should, he decided. After all, he deserved a little pick-me-up after having his head slammed against a solid wooden surface…even if it _had _ been a result of his own carelessness.

He grabbed the box in his right hand and the crumpled paper cup in his left, only stopping briefly by the garbage can before heading upstairs.

Jack opened the door to their bedroom still rubbed his aching forehead. And then, just like that, he forgot about the pain as quickly as he forgot how to breathe, his hand instantly dropping to his side.

_It's late in the evening; _

_She's wondering what clothes to wear.__  
><em>_She puts on her make-up,_

_And brushes her long blonde hair._

_And then she asks me, 'Do I look all right?'__  
><em>_And I say, 'Yes, you look wonderful tonight.'_

She looked stunning. Even after all these years, she could still stop him dead in his tracks with just one glimpse of her beauty. Jack leaned against the doorpost and simply drank in the mesmerizing sight before him.

She was wearing a midnight blue, sleeveless, knee-length satin dress with a halter neckline and straps that secured into a subtle knot at the nape of her neck. The bodice perfectly fitted every contour of her torso, enhancing the appeal of the delicate, silver threaded embroidery that shimmered against the slightest reflection of light. A thick cloth sash extracted from the dress material circumvented the waistline, showing off her flattering figure. The skirt of the dress cascaded freely over her hips and down her thighs, adding a touch of graceful elegance to the entire outfit. She wore a pair of dark metallic stilettos on her feet to compliment the silk threading on her bodice. She was a picture of perfection.

She hadn't noticed him come in; her back was directed towards the door as she stood in front of the dresser mirror and brushed her long blonde hair. She had chosen to wear it down; having straightened the length of it, only curling the tips; he loved it when she let her beautiful golden tresses cascade freely over her shoulders. Jack let his eyes feast on her partially naked back; soaking in the way her gorgeous porcelain skin glistened against the glow of the room's light.

Carly shifted her eyes from her own reflection and noticed her husband staring at her through the mirror. She set her hairbrush down on the dresser and turned around to face him.

"Hi," she greeted him with a cheerful smile. "I laid out your tie on the bed," she said, pointing in that direction.

Jack remained frozen, neither blinking nor moving a muscle; his gaze still fixated on her.

Carly knew that look and it made her stomach flutter.

"What do you think?" she asked, gesturing towards herself, even though his eyes clearly spoke for him.

Jack chuckled at the ridiculous question. If only she could catch a glimpse of his heart racing inside his chest, she would have some inkling of what he was thinking.

"You look wonderful," he said huskily, meaning it with every fiber of his being.

Carly beamed at him brightly. Her eyes drifted down to his hands.

"Jack, I can't believe you're snacking!" she chided lightly, glancing briefly from the paper box he held and back up at his face. "There's going to be tons of food there and…" she trailed off mid-sentence as something seemed to click. "Are those the new Milano Melts?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Jack nonchalantly fished out another cookie and held it up.

"Mm-hmm," he said, purposely waving it in front of her. "I grabbed a box at the store earlier today. He paused. "You want one?" he asked nonchalantly.

She nodded her head with a childlike desire.

"Then come and get it," Jack said; his voice low and raspy.

Carly smirked at his condition, slowly advancing toward him.

Jack inserted half the cookie into his mouth; brazenly inviting her to claim her share.

Carly's smirk transformed into a grin at her husband's seductive antics. She was about as resistant to them as a moth to a flame, and neither half of the Snyder couple would have it any other way. She came to a halt in front of him, her eyes dancing with anticipation. She slowly brought her mouth up to his, pressed her lips against him, and bit into her half of the cookie. They smiled and chewed in unison; each knowing exactly what would come next.

"I think I still have a little chocolate on my tongue," Jack remarked, blatantly feigning casualness. "Do you mind taking care of that for me?" he asked, his dark brown eyes twinkling playfully.

Carly readily indulged his request.

"With pleasure," she murmured, leaning up toward his face as he brought his mouth back down to hers.

He wrapped his arms around her waist as she encircled her arms around his neck. Their lips embraced passionately; both of them savoring the taste of the other. Carly licked the crease between Jack's lips and he automatically parted them, fulfilling their mutual longing. She surreptitiously swept her tongue along the length of his, making him moan at the contact. As expected, she could find no trace of any lingering chocolate in his mouth, but she certainly wasn't disappointed. Their kiss intensified, their hunger for each other growing with every additional second that their lips remained fervently locked. Jack slid his hands up Carly's back as she brought her hands to rest on the sides of his face. Pure desire engulfed them, each one knowing that time didn't allow for things to escalate, but neither one ready to relinquish control from their heated embrace yet. Jack mentally realized how wrong he had been earlier: of course there was something that tasted better than a Milano Melt…far, _far_ better, in fact.

Finally their mouths parted for an intake of air. They held each other for a few seconds, swaying slightly as they tried to regain their breaths. Carly readied herself as Jack drew his face towards hers again. Their foreheads connected before their lips and Jack abruptly pulled back.

"Ouch!" he yelped, rubbing the point of his recent injury again.

Carly looked at him, her face mingled with confusion and concern.

"Jack, what's wrong? Did I do something?"

Jack held up his other hand.

"No, honey, it's not you," he explained. "I forgot to close the cabinet door after I pulled out the cookies and accidentally walked into it and smacked my forehead."

Carly's expression softened to one of sympathy.

"Oh, you poor thing," she said, hooking one hand around his arm. "Come here."

Jack instantly stepped closer to her again. Carly pulled his face down to her lips and pressed a tender kiss to his forehead. Jack smiled at wife's loving ministrations. This sort of care definitely deserved some sort of a reward, he thought.

"I have something for you," he whispered, while their faces were still close together.

Carly's face lit up with excitement.

"What?" she asked eagerly.

Jack didn't respond. Instead, he gently took her by the hand and led her back to the dresser mirror, coming to stand behind her. He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small, red, felt covered jewelry box and held it out in front of her. Carly glanced up at him before taking it in her hands. Jack watched her face intently as she nimbly lifted the case and gasped. The look of surprise remained etched on her face as her fingers lightly traced what was inside. Resting on a small white silk pillow was a teardrop-shaped pendant encrusted with tiny round diamonds around the frame. Within the pendant there hung another circular ornament that held a larger diamond. The entire necklace was finished in white gold.

"Oh Jack!" Carly exclaimed in hushed tones, her voice thick with emotion. She looked up at her husband, her eyes shining with love. "This must've been really expensive!"

Jack smiled down at her. Every cent had been worth it just to see that look on her face.

"I've been saving up for it for a while," he told her, wrapping his arms around her waist and leaning in close to her ear. "And I figured that this would be the perfect night to give it to you." He planted a soft kiss on her neck. "You like it, don't you?"

She twisted around in his arms to come nose to nose with him and brought a hand up to caress his cheek.

"'Like it?' I love it! It's absolutely beautiful," she told him.

"Want me to do the honors?" Jack asked her, gesturing to the box.

Carly nodded, slowly freeing the necklace from the pillow cushion and handing it to him. She turned back around to face the mirror and gathered her hair up away from her neck.

Jack unhooked the clasp and brought the necklace up over her collarbone and fastened it around her neck. Carly looked at her reflection and fingered the pendant.

"_Now_ it looks even more beautiful," Jack remarked.

They looked at each other through the mirror and smiled.

"Oh! You know, I have a pair of earrings that'll go great with this!" she exclaimed.

Jack quickly interceded.

"Honey, we're going to be late," he said. "The party can't possibly start without the guest of honor."

She laughed and turned around, her face looming close to his. Her voice dropped to a deep, seductive tone as she spoke to him again.

"Yes, well, remind me to thank you properly for this when we get home," she said, lightly tracing her forefinger over his torso.

"Oh _trust_ me, I'll make sure I collect," he said, his chocolate colored eyes darkening with desire at the very thought of the manner in which he was going to be rewarded.

She gave him a naughty smirk before walking over to their bed and picking up the tie that she had set out for him.

_We go a party;  
>And everyone turns to see,<br>This beautiful lady,  
>That's walking around with me.<br>And then she asks me:  
>'Do you feel alright?'<br>And I say, 'Yes, I feel wonderful tonight.'_

They stood at the base of the stairs in front of the Lakeview entrance.

"You ready for this?" he asked her.

She inhaled and exhaled deeply a couple of times.

"Okay," she said to him with a nod.

He took her hand.

"You're going to be great, baby!" he said, giving her hand an assuring squeeze.

She gave him one last smile and they walked up and into the lobby together.

No sooner had they set one foot into the building when they were bombarded by a barrage of reporters and photographers shoving their microphones in their direction and blinding them with their flashing cameras. Every eye and head in the lobby was trained on her, and Jack could hear a mixture of murmurs from closeby that ranged from compliments about the outfit she was wearing to the things that she had come to accomplish over the last year. There wasn't a negative review among them. He felt her grip on his hand tighten as they continued to pepper her with questions. One reporter asked her who she was being escorted by and she turned to Jack and proudly informed the man that she was here with her 'husband.' It was then that she noticed an expression of discomfort on his face.

"Hey, are you feeling alright?" she asked him concernedly.

"I'm fine," he replied with a calm smile. "It's just that with my forehead already throbbing, having all these idiots attack me with their flashing cameras…it's a little overwhelming, that's all."

He smiled to reassure her that he would be okay.

They moved through the crowd and made their way into the main hall where the party was taking place. With his wife as the guest of honor, Jack wasn't surprised when they once again received nearly the same treatment as they had when they'd walked through the large main doors only moments earlier. Fortunately, this time, they were greeted by two familiar faces.

Lily shuffled her way through the crowd and hurried over to them with Holden following at a calmer face not too far behind.

"Oh Carly, you look beautiful!" Lily exclaimed as the two friends reached out to share a hug.

"Wow, Lily! So do you!" Carly returned, surveying her friend's outfit. Of course she could hardly find a flaw with the slinky black dress, given that it was a Carly Snyder original. But Lily truly did look lovely, and Jack told her as much as he gave her a peck on the cheek.

Lily's attention went to the trinket around Carly's neck. She reached forward and traced the shimmering pendant.

"Oh my gosh, this is gorgeous!" she exclaimed.

Carly smiled.

"It's from Jack," she said with a warm smile as she felt his arm wrap around her waist.

Just then Holden came to a halt next to his ex-wife, greeting Carly in almost the same manner as Jack had greeted Lily only seconds ago, before the two cousins exchanged a handshake.

Holden scanned the room and let out a whistle at the bustling crowd surrounding them.

"Would you _look_ at this place?" he asked rhetorically. "It's like we're in the midst of a mosh pit."

The other three laughed at his analogy.

"I'm not surprised," Jack commented, his own eyes surveying the immense gathering. "They're all here to catch a glimpse of Oakdale's most successful fashion designer."

His eyes gleamed into Carly's, who silently showed her husband how much his support and his presence meant to her that night.

"Yes," Lily agreed, as she gently clasped Carly's arms, "Which is why I need to steal her away now."

Jack groaned as he tightened his grip around his wife's waist. "It's time to go backstage already?" he grumbled.

Lily shot him a slight frown.

"Jack, I promise I'll bring her back to you in one piece," she assured him. "But right now, there are confused models backstage who could use some direction."

Carly chuckled as she gently stroked her pouting husband's forehead.

"Actually Lily, it's him I'm worried about. You see, the detective here ran his head through a kitchen cabinet right before we left the house. His head was already throbbing, and I'm not sure the papparazzi and their relentless cameras are going to do any good."

"Well, I might be able to help," Holden piped in, gesturing toward the open bar. "Come on, big guy. Let's get you some tonic," he said as he tapped his cousin twice on the shoulders.

Jack lingered in his rooted space as he prepared to part from his wife. He pulled her close to him and brought his face close to hers.

"Hey," he said in a husky whisper – one that she could hear even amidst the din of the crowd, "Knock 'em dead, beautiful."

"I love you, G-man," she whispered back in response.

They stood there together, each pair of eyes frozen on the other one's face. For just those few moments, the crowd dissolved into oblivion, and all that mattered was the tiny little universe that consisted of nothing but the two of them. A mixture of love, adoration, pride, and longing coursed through their veins as they gazed into the face they loved more than any other.

Carly broke the spell when she realized Lily and Holden's close presence behind her. She cupped Jack's face with her hands and brought his forehead down to her lips and placed a tender, loving kiss over the point of impact. Then she really had to go. After exchanging one final look, both Jack and Carly were pulled in opposing directions by one half of the ex Snyder couple.

"So, Holden is certainly blurring the line between 'friend' and…more," Carly teased.

Lily rolled her eyes, knowing exactly where her business partner and also friend was going with this.

"Don't start," she warned feebly.

Carly snickered.

"I'm just calling it like I see it," she tried to explain naively.

"Uh…huh," Lily replied. "Let's not forget that the two of us share _four_ children together."

"Oh shut up, Lily!" she exclaimed, not buying her friend's reasoning. "We _both_ know this has nothing to do with the kids," she said as they continued to weave their way backstage. "Speaking of the kids..." she continued, looking around the crowd, "where are they?"

"Well, the younger ones are in the powder room, and Parker and Faith are taking a walk out in the garden."

Carly cringed slightly.

"Let's just hope that that's all they're doing."

Lily nodded and agreed heartily. They both decided that they trusted their children…at least for the time being, and opened the door to gain access backstage.

Meanwhile, the men stood at the bar after putting in their drink orders.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Holden asked Jack. "Lily and Carly have been through so much together, but here they are, on the verge of launching their line with a ton of success staring them in the face."

Jack smiled as he reflected on his cousin's words.

"They really have," he agreed. "You know, when we were married before, _this_ is the kind of career I wanted for her. This is what she'd dreamed of for so long, so seeing her get everything she'd ever wanted…it's amazing."

Jack looked around the crowded room, spotting several familiar faces amidst them: Bob and Kim, Lucinda and John, Tom and Margo, Chris and Katie, Casey and Allison, Gwen and Will…the light smile that had remained on his face as he glazed over the couples disappeared when his eyes landed on a lone figure that stood lurking in a corner, his eyes scanning the crowd. Holden followed Jack's scowl until Craig Montgomery came into view.

"Forget about him," he advised his cousin. "Just try to enjoy the fact that your wife finally fulfilled her dream…without him in the picture."

"I swear to God I will kill him if he does anything to ruin this night for her," Jack said through gritted teeth.

"If he knows what's good for him, he'll spend the rest of the night like a fall on the wall," Holden replied.

"Your drink, gentleman," the bartender said, interrupting their conversation as he set their drink on the ledge before them.

"So, where the hell were you last night?" Jack asked. "I thought we were going to watch the Cubs game together."

Holden stiffened up at the question, slightly blushing.

"I am _so_ sorry man," he started to apologize. "I just got tied up somewhere else, and by the time I realized that I was having dinner at your place, it was really late and I didn't want to call and wake up the baby."

Jack studied his cousin closely. His nervousness and body language clearly signified something more.

"Uh…huh," he said knowingly. "You and Lily hit it off again last night?" he asked, a clear smirk on his face.

Holden fumbled for words. He sighed as he attempted to explain his situation.

"I knew there wouldn't be any beer at your place, so I stopped by Safeway to pick some up on my way over, and I ran into Lily near the entrance. Her cart was overflowing with groceries and stuff kept falling out. Apparently she was cooking dinner for the kids. As I helped her to the car, she invited me to join them. I could hardly say 'no.' Not when we're trying so hard to make it work. I completely even forgot why I was at Safeway myself in the first place. Then when we got home, it was just so great to spend time with her and the kids…you know, the way it used to be, and I completely lost track of everything else. It wasn't until I was out the door that I realized I was supposed to be at Milltown last night."

Jack smiled at his cousin's explanation. It was nice to see Holden and Lily make so much progress in their relationship. They'd been taking things really slow this time, not wanting to mess anything up. Of course Jack could completely relate to Holden's position. He knew that if he had been in Holden's position last night, he might've done the exact same thing.

"Don't worry about it," he told his cousin. "The kids finished the left over pizza for lunch this afternoon." Jack paused. "Where are the kids?" he asked.

Holden gave Jack the same information that Lily had given Holden.

"So, how'd the game end up?" Holden asked his cousin.

Jack took a sip of his drink before he began to give Holden a play-by-play synopsis of the game.

Nearly fifteen minutes and a lot more conversation later, they both suddenly noticed that the background music had died as the lights simultaneously began to dim.

"Ladies and gentleman, can I have your attention, please?" Lily spoke into the microphone that sat at the front edge of the long runaway, a lone spotlight shining directly on her. "On behalf of Carly and myself, I would like to thank you all so much for being here tonight. As you can imagine, this is a truly exciting night for the both of us, so to see such a great turnout has been extremely overwhelming and humbling to say the least. We really appreciate your support and interest in our ventures, and we hope that our designs will live up to your expectations. So without further ado, I present to you: Carly Snyder Unlimited."

With that, Lily quickly exited the stage. Overhead, a song with a very edgy grunge beat began to play and the runway lit up, followed by the lighting of the logo on the back wall that read "Carly Snyder Unlimited," in a gorgeously scripted font.

One by one the models started strutting down the runaway, each one of them posing in various different styles when it was her turn to display the outfit she was wearing. While some men – married and otherwise – seemed to clearly be ogling the beautiful women parading around before them, all Jack could do was stare at each one of his wife's designs, marvelling at her creativity. A little while later, the music came to a halt and the room lights came back on, signifying the end of the fashion show. Lily made her way back onto the stage, microphone in one hand and a huge bouquet of red roses draped over the other.

"Well, ladies and gentleman, that concludes our presentation for tonight. Now, I know that you all are anxious to meet the star of the show: the person responsible for all the beautiful designs we saw here tonight. Please join me in welcoming Carly Snyder to the stage," Lily announced, turning her head backward as she looked for her partner. Seconds later Carly emerged and made her way down the runway to where Lily stood.

Jack had to admit that of all the beautiful women who had stepped onto that runway tonight, no one had gotten his heart racing until he saw his wife walking the length of it. It sometimes him how she still had the impact on his after all these years. She'd been with other people since, and so had he, but that pull – that ability to make him feel so strongly – the only woman who had ever been capable of doing that to him had been Carly. He knew it would remain that way until the day he died.

_I feel wonderful because I see__ t__he love light in your eyes.__  
><em>_And the wonder of it all__ i__s that you just don't realize how much I love you._

Lily embraced Carly and handed her the flowers and the microphone. Carly accepted both and took a deep breath in before her eyes drifted through the crowd. A bright smile emerged on her face when she made eye contact with the person she had been searching for. Jack returned her smile with a proud one of his own. Carly slowly lifted the microphone to her mouth.

"Thank you all so much for being here tonight!" she exclaimed, her voice teeming with happiness. "I'm so glad that you were all able to share in this special night with Lily and me. It's meant to much to us." She paused. Her eyes seeked his out again. She found him standing there with the same expression: one of nothing but immense pride. It meant everything to her. Not only his presence and his pride, but also to once again be sharing his last name. When she'd envisioned her life as a fashion designer, she'd always imagined it would contain the surname "Snyder" somewhere within it…and now it was happening!

"More than anything, I'd like to thank my husband, Jack Snyder," she said, her tone shifting from one of happiness to one filled with thick emotion. Jack could see her eyes starting to shine, and he knew that she was on the verge of shedding a few happy tears. "I couldn't have done this without you, G-man. Having you beside me, supporting me, and encouraging me, and loving me, gave me the strength I needed to get where I am today. All those years whenever I pictured myself standing on a runway like this one someday with my very own fashion line, I always dreamed that your face would be there in the crowd, looking at me the way you are right. You make me so happy, Jack. Thank you so much for making all my dreams come true. I love you with all my heart."

Jack smiled at her, all the love he felt inside shining through his eyes. He never thought he would ever be this happy again. Certainly not with Carly. He knew he had wanted it more than once. Even while he was married to someone else, there was a part of him that still yearned for Carly. He had tried like hell to shut it off, but it was useless. Still, even as his heart had longed for her, the reality that she would be his again had started to fade with time. They had just been through so much – too much to overcome, he'd thought at one point. Even as they had wanted to be together, they had rejected each other multiple times since then. Looking back on it now, none of it had made sense. All the fights, the phony marriages, the inability to talk about their feelings for each other…none of it. But _this_ made sense. Seeing Carly one day make her name known again – this time with her own label and under her own terms – it was just as much Jack's dream as it was Carly's…only, he'd forgotten that along the way. However, as he stood there, with their eyes connected and reflecting all the love that they felt for each other, all that mattered was right now. Right then. And from where he stood, everything was right with the world. Yes, his forehead was still throbbing slightly, but everything else was just as it should be.

Carly's eyes lingered on Jack for a few more moments before she turned to thank Lily. She had kept her address to the crowd very short and sweet, and no sooner had she spoken her final sentence, when the mob of reporters and photographers gathered around the runway to swarm her with pictures and questions. Lily quickly intervened, informing the reporters that neither she nor Carly were scheduled to answer any questions tonight. She once again made it clear that the press conference would take place the following weekend before the boutique's grand opening. With that, she led Carly offstage. Jack watched as Parker and Faith congratulated Carly and Lily with hugs and kisses. Parker waved at his Dad before he took Faith by the hand and led through the crowd.

"Where are those two off to?" Holden asked Lily.

"They're going to grab some dinner at the restaurant," Lily informed him.

"Are the younger kids still in the powder room?" Jack asked. "I haven't seen my daughter all night!"

Carly nodded.

"Yeah, they decided to watch the show in one of the dressing rooms after helping themselves to a hefty supply of junk food."

"You guys…you were both absolutely phenomenal tonight," Holden said sincerely.

Lily smiled brightly at Holden's compliment.

"Thank you," she accepted graciously. "But I think we need to give it up to Oakdale's hottest new celebrity."

"You got that right," Jack said as he pulled Carly into his arms and kissed her. All the emotions that they had only been able to communicate with their eyes came pouring out now that they were pressed against each other. They began to kiss more passionately, almost as if they'd lost track of where they were and the company around them.

"Okay, you two," Holden cut in. "Maybe you guys should continue this at Makeout Point…or in your bedroom."

Jack and Carly hesitantly broke apart. Jack licked his lips and smiled down at his wife.

"Mmm…you know, the man does have a point. The kids are staying over at Emma's, so we _do_ have the house all to ourselves."

Carly's eyes danced mischievously.

"That _is_ true," she agreed. "Plus I haven't properly thanked you for this lovely necklace yet."

Jack grinned.

"Let's get outta here, Mrs. Snyder," he said, taking her hand in his.

They said their goodbyes to Holden and Lily, quickly reminding the two of them to keep an eye on Parker and Faith. Holden and Lily assured them that they would see to it that the kids got into bed on time and make sure that their hormonally charged children were under tight supervision. Jack led Carly through the fray as quickly as possible and shot a quick 'thank you' heavenward at having been able to escape the press once he got into the passenger seat of the car.

_It's time to go home now, and I've got an aching head,__  
><em>_So I give her the car keys and she helps me to bed.__  
><em>_And then I tell her, as I turn out the light,__  
><em>_I say, 'My darling, you were wonderful tonight.__  
><em>_Oh my darling, you were wonderful tonight.'_

Once they had gotten home, it didn't take either of them very long to change out of their formal wear and into their sleeping clothes. Carly slipped into her black satin nightie and then walked over to the dresser to brush her hair again. Jack pulled on his flannel pajama pants and climbed into bed.

"Hey lady, I don't think I can wait much longer," he teased as he rested his bare back against the headboard.

Carly turned around and flashed him a smirk, and without saying a word, she set the brush down on the dresser and sauntered toward the bed. She climbed in and immediately molded herself to his bare chest. He tightened his arms around her and rested his cheek against the top of her head. They lay there for a few moments, neither one speaking as they silently recalled the night's events. Then Jack leaned over to his left and quietly turned out the lamp light and darkness engulfed their bedroom…save for the moonbeam that shimmered through the window.

"Carly," Jack whispered, his voice low and husky, "Baby, you were wonderful tonight."

At that, Carly turned her head and looked at him. Jack knew where they both wanted this to go, so he immediately pulled her body against his and kissed her with all his might. She responded with a strengh of her own as she hoisted herself on her knee so that she had better access to his mouth. Carly pressed her palm against his chest just as their tongues met in full force. Her hand slowly began to glide down his chest, over the center of his ribcage all the way down to his belly button. She artfully slipped a finger underneath the waistband of his pants and continued to explore further below. Her hand finally reached it's destination and Jack felt as though his head would explode. His head instinctively snapped back, breaking their heated kiss as he hissed for air. He uttered her name like a prayer when he exhaled and they came face to face again, both their chests rising and falling as they tried to breathe. She stared at him, unashamed by her action as her hand continued to rest over what had to be the most heated part of his body. He stared back at her, equally unashamed, as he hardened against her grasp and felt himself go erect. He softly rotated their bodies so that she gently landed onto the mattress, and he settled himself on top of her. He reached under her nightie, grazing her thigh as he reached for the hem of her satin panties. She moaned as he began to slide them down her legs. Carly responded by tugging down at his pajamas, helping him dispose of them in a hurry before they both desperately reached for his boxers, shedding the last article of clothing that separated them from connecting at the source of the scorching heat that burned inside each of them. Jack grasped the sides of her hips and smoothly slid into her. They both gasped in unison as he settled into her, into a place that had been made just for him.


End file.
